Justification for war by Moscow: The “Holy War” Propaganda

For years now, the Swamps¹ have churned out increasingly bizarre justifications for the war in Ukraine. Yet from the very beginning, the real justification for war by Moscow always came down to one simple phrase of Kremlin Führer: “I made a decision” — nothing more.

Everyone assumed this story would play out like it did in Georgia. They figured that once Ukraine capitulated, they could slap any legend onto the invasion and call it history. Why doubt it? After all, comrade Medinsky — the head of those “negotiation” teams from months back, is a storyteller of the highest order. The Kremlin handed him the task: justify the war, describe Ukraine’s “inevitable” and “swift” defeat. He probably already has his fiction drafted and Pootin has already approved it.

Medinsky’s Failed Justification for war by Moscow

And that’s where it gets interesting. Medinsky, a native of Cherkasy Oblast, stands as one of the chief ideologues of Ruscism². This isn’t some fringe theorist like Alexander Dugin drowning in Aryan mythology. This is a systemic manipulator calibrated like Goebbels himself. Armed with doctorates in history and political science, he churns out pseudo-academic “works” that he attempts to spread across the world in multiple languages. Just recently in Rome, protesters took to the streets over Medinsky’s Italian-language book — a tome where he completely inverted World War II history and falsified literally everything in it.

So naturally, this character developed a “solid” theory designed to explain the essence and outcome of the war with Ukraine. Except it didn’t work. The Full-Scale Invasion has now dragged on for nearly four years, and Medinsky’s grand narratives remain unwanted. So they switched to heavier tools. The Moscow church came down hard. They declared the war sacred and, in direct violation of the sixth divine commandment — “Thou shalt not kill” — they started calling for killing, killing, and more killing. In the past, such departures from Church canon got justified by the necessity to fight infidels. But now they wage war against Christians while recruiting infidels and the godless to their side.

For those who think we’re exaggerating

For those who think we’re exaggerating, who believe their Kremlin Patriarchate preaches nothing of the sort and calls instead to “love thy neighbor,” here’s a little text that speaks volumes. This is an instruction on how and when to pray for Putin. And for anyone currently walking through the doors of a Moscow church — read this carefully, from beginning to end:

A video appeared online showing the Church praying for Vladimir Putin at a gathering of military priests… We reported last year about the introduction of special prayers for the president. This information now has confirmation. And this didn’t happen by accident.

We won’t link to the video for obvious reasons. Instead, here’s what the Mosсow priests themselves said about it:

We specifically asked to publish the video of prayer for Vladimir Vladimirovich. So that all Russians see how to do it properly and pray constantly, every day, for our president. Right now, this is especially important.

In other words, if you’re praying for the tsar, you don’t ask questions about why the war exists or what caused it. Pray and that’s it—no need for Medinsky’s treatises that most people wouldn’t understand anyway.

The Kremlin’s Religious Propaganda Machine

Simply put, Moscow’s priests don’t need their flock to think. They need their flock to believe without question. And to make this belief stick hard, they explain exactly how to pray properly:

Our primate issued an order to pray for the president at least seven times daily. These are difficult times. Vladimir Vladimirovich faces external and internal enemies. Threats intensify every day. We must pray so that our president continues the SVO³. So that he remains alive and healthy. So that he resolves all the problems troubling our people — with fuel, with prices, so he deals with everything that distracts people from the sacred war we’re waging. So that our strikes on Kyiv and other cities of satanic Ukraine continue, and the enemy’s retaliatory strikes are repelled. So that our Moscow stands unshaken and strong. Our only hope rests on the president — we must pray for him.

Let’s be crystal clear: they’re calling for seven prayers daily so that we get killed faster and Ukraine gets destroyed. That’s what needs to happen more often than a bathroom visit. And they add that even the children of heaven’s inhabitants are going to war because it’s sacred. They cite the example of Dmitry Peskov’s son — Pootin’s press secretary’s son — who “voluntarily” fought for six months with Wagner as an artilleryman. At the time, someone wrote that if Pootin had a son, he’d do the same… but Pootin only has daughters.

The Maldives Instead of Medals

Peskov’s son became a universal example of how the authorities consider the war just, since they send their own children to fight. And they supposedly fight like everyone else, receiving medals for it. But as always, the second layer of this fairy tale didn’t hold for long. Eventually, the truth emerged:

According to leaked data from the Russian border service, on January 31, 2023, Nikolai Peskov (also known as Nikolai Chauless) left Russia and flew to the Maldives, where he spent about three weeks. Later that same year, he visited the region again. Additionally, Peskov’s son repeatedly visited Turkey and the UAE. These reports cast doubt on his claims of participation in combat.

So there it is. A leak from Russian border guards revealed that Kolya Peskov didn’t fight in Wagner units at all. Instead, he conducted “artillery exercises” on the Maldives and in the Emirates. That’s the “sacred” war for you. Some Orcs get medals for storming forest strips on the Maldives or sitting in Turkish bunkers. Others come home to the Swamps in black bags, dismantled into spare parts.

But for this to continue, you need to pray. Seven times a day. And this is the core of justification for war by Moscow — not logic, not history, not truth. Just lies, and the blood.

Swamps¹ – ironic name for Russia, emphasizing decay, stagnation, and filth.

Ruscism² – Russian fascism; an ideology combining imperial nationalism, militarism, aggressive expansionism, and religious manipulation. See more on Wikipedia.

SVO³ – abbreviation of “Spetsialnaya Voennaya Operatsiya” (“special military operation”). Since 2022, this is the euphemism used by Orcs to describe their full-scale war against Ukraine.